It is known in the art to use filters for collecting and removing food particles from the cooking oil of deep fryers, in order to extend the life of the cooking oil.
In many cases, the filtering of the cooking oil requires the deep fryer to be turned off and at least a portion of the cooking oil to be drained from the fry pot of the deep fryer, in order to pass the cooking oil through the filter and subsequently return the cooking oil into the fry pot. Given that, for filtration to be most efficient, it is usually recommended to filter hot cooking oil (i.e. cooking oil between 200° F. and 350° F.), manipulation of the cooking oil in order to perform such filtering often is hazardous.
Mobile or integrated systems which can perform the drainage, filtering and return of the cooking oil, without human manipulation, are known in the art. However, such systems tend to suffer from drawbacks. For example, these systems often require hazardous human intervention in order to unclog the outlet of the fry pot, such as the drain thereof, as the accumulated particles tend to clog the outlet during the draining stage.
Solutions have also been proposed in order to collect food particles from the cooking oil directly in the fry pot, using a removable mechanical filter inside the fry pot. Such solutions however also tend to suffer from several drawbacks. Indeed, in many cases, the mechanical filter maintains the collected food particles in the hot zone of the fry pot (i.e. in a section substantially leveled or above the heating elements), which results in an undesirable overcooking (or burning) of the collected food particles. Known mechanical filters, which are positionable into the cold zone of the fry pot, only cover a restricted section of the fry pot, over the drain, and do not provide optimal mechanical filtering, as a quantity of food particles can sink into the cold zone, outside of the area covered by the filter. Such particles can contribute to the above-described clogging of the drain of the fry pot if external filtering is performed. Moreover, mechanical filters, which are positionable into the cold zone of the fry pot, may not be adapted to particular types of fry pots, depending on the position of the heating elements which the mechanical filter has to go through in order to reach the cold zone.
In view of the above, there is a need for an improved filter for a deep fryer and filtering membrane support for same which, by virtue of its design and components, would be able to overcome or at least minimize some of the above-discussed prior art concerns.